Violist Michael Larco joined the Los Angeles Philharmonic in 2012 after seven seasons as Assistant Principal in the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra. A frequent participant of the LA Phil’s Green Umbrella and Chamber Music Series, Michael has also been a guest violist with The Capitol Ensemble at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art and Street Symphony. He has collaborated in concert with Lynn Harrell, Itzhak Perlman, Alisa Weilerstein, and Rachel Barton Pine. Recent appearances have included a Chicago “Dame Myra Hess” recital debut, broadcast live on WFMT, with pianist Soojin Ahn; performances at the Philadelphia Chamber Music Society with tenor Anthony Dean Griffey; Kravis Center for the Performing Arts (West Palm Beach); Zankel Hall at Carnegie Hall with Griffey and Warren Jones; Chamber Music Rochester (NY); Skaneateles Festival (NY); and Monadnock Music (NH). Michael was a founding member (2000-2005) of New York City-based Fountain Ensemble.
He has served as principal violist of the Juilliard Orchestra and the Tanglewood Music Center Orchestra under Seiji Ozawa, Kurt Masur, and James Conlon. In recent seasons, he has performed in the New York Philharmonic, the Boston Symphony Orchestra, and the Philadelphia Orchestra. Since 2014, he has mentored students at Youth Orchestra of Los Angeles (YOLA) and is on the faculty of the Pascale Institute in South Pasadena.
Larco received his B.M. and M.M. degrees from The Juilliard School, where he studied with Heidi Castleman, Misha Amory, and Samuel Rhodes. In 1999, Larco was awarded the Frank Huntington Beebe Scholarship for studies in Europe. While living in Italy from 1999-2000, he studied both at the Mozarteum in Salzburg with Thomas Riebl and in Cremona, Italy with Bruno Giuranna.
Education: B.M., M.M., The Juilliard School